


Get Up

by PhantomWarrior99



Category: Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Mentions of Blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-29
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:55:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26715604
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PhantomWarrior99/pseuds/PhantomWarrior99
Summary: Inseparable on and off the battle field, they're forever spurring each other on.
Relationships: Female Shepard/Garrus Vakarian
Comments: 4
Kudos: 21





	Get Up

Her ears are still ringing. The world is a blur of dust and rubble and she can't breathe.

_What happened? Anomaly. Pirates. Explosion. Garrus - Garrus!_

There's a panicked pang that sinks deep into her chest like a sharp blade. A hoarse cough wracks her frame and she fights to lift her head.

_Have to find him. Garrus--_

And then he's there, his voice a distant echo beneath the cacophony of muffled laser fire.

"Shepard!"

She can feel the pressure of his talons bearing down on her arms and relief consumes her features as she tries to make him out. He shakes her, probably hoping to jar her from her disorientation and her hands clamp around his biceps to steady herself.

"I'm okay," she nods shakily, blinking away the daze that threatens to consume her vision.

"You have to get up." Garrus urges, tearing his eyes away long enough to ensure they're still in the clear. 

"I--"

"Come on, Shepard," he urges, shifting to her side and lifting her left arm, securing it around his neck despite her soft growl of pain, "On your feet."

"Garrus, what--"

"No time for that now. Get up," he braces her weight, trying like hell to get them both off the ground.

She can see the agony in his features, the subtle flare of his mandibles as he just tries to move. She grabs ahold of the nearest piece of concrete, the heel of her hand bearing down hard as she tries to leverage herself up. It's the respite Garrus needs and then they're stumbling together upwards onto unsteady legs.

He reels from a misstep, talons bearing down harshly on her side before she manages to catch him, earning herself an appreciative look from the towering Turian. And then they're half-limping, half-scampering through the city's remnants. How they aren't getting shot, Shepard doesn't know, but she's focused on making sure they both stay on their feet. She notices Garrus's limp, the agonized glint in deep blue with every step but she can't help him - not out here.

There's another explosion and they're thrown, miraculously, behind cover. Shepard tries to tuck and roll, but there's nothing left in her legs and she's sent sprawling to the ground. Garrus lands on his back with a heavy thud, remaining motionless as the shock and pain sets in.

She manages to get her elbows under her, looking over at the Turian with concern, "Garrus?"

He summons a half-hearted wave, but she can hear the stark pain in his voice, "I'm here, Shepard, don't worry."

She crawls towards him, keeping her head low until she's beside him, "How bad is it?"

He shakes his head, "I'll be alright, just...need a second."

Shepard knows him better than that. She knows every fluctuation in his voice, every twinge in his tone and she doesn't buy it. She slowly drags herself to an upright position, back pressed against the large remnants of a building wall. She tries to activate her omni-tool, "I got some medi-gel for that. You'll be back to those calibrations in no time," she tries to tease gently, praying her voice sounds calmer than she feels as fingers tremble when she tries to press the damned holographic buttons.

"I'm okay, Shep," he reassures her, his hand settling on her knee. It's enough to draw her attention away from the tool, but not enough to quell the tangible fear in her eyes.

"You'd better be," she returns softly, administering the medi-gel. It stabilizes him, but there's no way they'll make it back to the ship on foot. Her hand moves to her earpiece, "Joker? Status update."

_Doesn't look good, Commander. Thane's doing his best, but he's outnumbered._

"Order him to fall back to the shuttle, get the hell out of here and come back with reinforcements."

_We can't just abandon you down there!_

"You're not abandoning us," sharp emerald lift to the sky, "Tactical retreat. Thane will know what to do."

There comes a growl of frustration from the other end of the comm before he answers, _Understood. Hang tight. We'll get you and Garrus out of there._

"I know you will, Shepard out."

"That certainly sounded like it went well," Garrus rasps, turning his head ever so slightly to see her.

"Have some faith in your crewmates, they'll get us out of this mess," she tries a wry smile as she leans against the wall remnants.

"I have no doubts they'll get us out of here, but whether or not we're still breathing when they do is another matter entirely." He returns, closing his eyes.

"Oh, we'll be breathing. It's going to take a lot more than a band of mercs to kill us."

"I certainly hope you're right, Shepard."

"What happened to _get up_?" There's a playful lilt in her voice as she looks down at him.

"I said _you_ had to get up, I said nothing of the sort about _me_."

She notes the soft smile that tugs at the corner of his mouth and it grants her the slightest trace of hope before her gaze drifts back to the horizon, "We'll make it out of here, Garrus. Even if I have to carry you."

"I believe you, Shepard, but in the event you're wrong," he looks over at her, taking one of her gloved hands in his, "Bleeding out on an exotic planet isn't the worst way to go, especially given the company."

"You getting soft on me, Vakarian?"

"Maybe. Maybe it's the pain talking, but," his fingers flex around hers, "Thank you for taking me with you two years ago."

"Thanks for having my back." She returns the gentle squeeze, "Now save your strength. I'll keep watch."

He nods slowly, adjusting his head before he closes his eyes to try and rest. As the sun begins to set, Shepard settles against the cool concrete and rests her free hand on the side of her rifle, the other absently brushing her thumb along his hand.

_Hang in there, Garrus. It'd be an awfully empty galaxy without you._

\-------------------------------

**Author's Note:**

> Hey folks!  
> I hope you enjoyed this short fic! I've had it done for almost 3 months and every time I remembered it, I was busy and then proceeded to forget to post it again. xD  
> Please leave a kudo/comment and let me know your thoughts! Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it!  
> ~ Phantom


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